March 8, 2003
AMES, Iowa – Senior Jessica DeFreitas placed first and provisionally qualified for next weekend’s NCAA Championships in the long jump at Iowa State’s Cyclone National Qualifier Saturday, as the Georgia Tech men’s and women’s track and field team’s enjoyed several impressive performances on the final weekend before the national championships. The Jackets also competed in last chance meets at Boise State and Notre Dame.
DeFreitas jumped a season-best 20’5.00″ provisionally qualify in her third event this season. The mark was a career-best and ranks as the second-best in Tech history. DeFreitas also owns provisional marks in the triple jump and 60-meter dash. She also finished eighth in the triple jump Saturday in 40’9.75″.
Sophomore Dana Rogers improved her provisional mark in the 60-meter hurdles with a time of 7.43 and a fourth-place finish. Additionally, freshman Chaunte Howard was second in the high jump in 5’10.75″, junior Amandi Rhett placed third in the 60-meter dash in 7.43 and sophomore Shanta Smith finished fourth in the triple jump in 42’1.50″. All three marks met the provisional standards but were not season bests. Howard is automatically qualified in the high jump.
Senior Brian Fraser was the lone men’s competitor for Tech at Iowa State, and he placed third in the triple jump in 50’10.00″.
Tech had no new qualifiers at Boise State’s NCAA Last Chance Qualifier in Nampa, Idaho, but a pair of school records were set. Sophomore Zeb Sion eclipsed the shot put mark for the second consecutive weekend with a toss of 58’2.00″ in a second-place finish. Classmate Ian Brewer broke his own school record in the weight throw with a mark of 60’0.50″, also good for a second-place finish. Sophomore Jonathan Spillman was sixth in the shot put with a season-best mark of 54’4.00″. The lone women’s competition for the Jackets at BSU was freshman Jessica Graff, who was third in the pole vault in 12’4.00″.
A pair of Jackets at Notre Dame’s Alex Wilson Invitational closed out the weekend for Tech. Junior Brendon Mahoney was ninth in the mile in 4:07.45, while junior Kyle Rabbitt was 14th in the 5000 meters in 14:36.66.
The 2003 NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championships are set for March 14-15 in Fayetteville, Ark. Howard will compete in the high jump, while several other Yellow Jackets will learn their fate early next week.
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